Saturday, June 26, 2010

Toronto artist Lisa Ridout has just sent us a delicious shipment of new joolz that sparkle with Swarovski crystals and gleaming sterling silver. Known for her great sense of style and meticulous craftsmanship, Lisa takes handcrafted jewelry to its highest level. We just love her work and so do our customers.

This morning I worked to put her 14 new pieces into inventory, rearranged a few cases and opened the doors. Alice came in to work a few hours later and I encouraged her to wear one of Lisa's new pieces, the aqua Carlu pendant on an elegant sterling choker. It looked magnificent on Alice and she was just beaming.

In walked a new customer, accompanied by her daughter and two granddaughters. She said she was looking for something "pink." I showed her a number of pieces, including Lisa's Carlu pendant in pink. She then asked to try it with the choker Alice was wearing. The result was heaven and she took both pieces. Another perfect match. Alice had to look for another Lisa Ridout necklace to wear with the aqua pendant.

Lisa has also sent us the Carlu bracelet in aqua - a showstopper in its own right:

The sparkle factor is off the charts but not all of Lisa's pieces include crystals. Here is her charming Flower bracelet. We also have the matching pendant and earrings:

This is one talented lady. Each link is handmade by Lisa and then incorporated into outstanding designs. Come in and see them all for yourself. You won't be disappointed.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Summer is only two days old, but it's been hot and muggy - usual August weather in June. And then this afternoon, at 1:45pm, the house started rocking from the 5.5 earthquake centered up near Ottawa. We had a good 45 seconds of movement.

Mother Nature is definitely trying out her new Shake 'n Bake recipe on the Finger Lakes area.

Friday, June 18, 2010

Our trip to Jackson Hole last September continues to pay off for JOOLZ customers. You'll remember that we found popular JOOLZ artist Monica Jansen and her 60" long wrap necklaces in a gallery there.

We also found the work of Massachusetts artist Barbara Silverstein during a quick stop at the Amangani resort shop. I broke my own rule of never buying jewelry at retail prices and purchased a wonderful necklace of Barbara's that incorporates egg-shaped stones of smooth rutilated quartz and a single black lava rock. Stunning.

Now we have some of Barbara's work on order and it should be arriving soon. Here is her necklace of faux pearls encased in stainless steel knitted mesh, together with the matching earrings:

Another piece that will be coming in our first order is this simple yet breathtaking cable necklace and matching drop earrings. We'll have them in both white and grey "pearls":

Monday, June 14, 2010

Reports ahead of the Sugarland concert at CMAC, the open-air concert venue in Canandaigua, were that over 12,000 fans were expected and parking was going to be a nightmare. We arrived early, reading material in hand, found a good parking spot with no problem and waited it out. We found our seats about an hour before the concert and settled in. Then the two "ladies" in front of us arrived and settled in. Our concert experience was going to be different!

These two women were jazzed up and ready to party. They were chewin' their gum, drinkin' their beers and wigglin' their fannies. Their unbelievably tacky hats (which they were NOT going to remove) had rhinestone designs on the front that included blinking, battery-operated lights. The only time I could see anything on stage during the opening acts of Danny Gokey and Luke Bryan was when they left to go outside to smoke.

Danny and Luke got the crowd ready for the superstars and the show was on! We stood for the entire Sugarland concert and finally I could see something on stage. (It helps to have stadium seating and to be 5'9"). The set was great, Jennifer and Kristian were great and it was one fabulous concert:

The crowd loved it and so did we. And while I left my rhinestone-studded hat and chewin' gum at home, I admit that from beginning to end, my fanny was wigglin'.

Monday, June 7, 2010

Our family gathered in Westchester County this past weekend to celebrate our niece's wedding. Despite the overwhelming heat and humidity, we all had a great time. The bride was breathtakingly beautiful, the wedding was gorgeous and our kids looked pretty darn good, too. Here they are....all dressed up and ready to party:

WELCOME TO THE JOOLZ BLOG

This blog chronicled the life and times of JOOLZ, a retail business in Canandaigua, NY that sold handcrafted jewelry made by artists from across the US and Canada. Open from 2007-2013 as a storefront and online operation, the business was closed so that the owner could have a more flexible lifestyle. We invite you to read through past posts and to join us on our new blog, Brownies for Breakfast.